April 11 (UPI) — At least six people died when a Russian military helicopter crashed in the far eastern city of Khabarovsk, Russian state media reported Wednesday.
There were no surviving crew members in the crash. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
“The investigation looks into three major versions of the accident: weather conditions, technical malfunction or pilot error,” the Russian Investigative Committee said in a statement.
A criminal investigation was also launched into the potential violation of air safety rules, TASS reported.
One eyewitness told the Siberian Times that the Mi-8 helicopter was flying in heavy fog and slammed into a communications tower before the crash.
The helicopter was reportedly on a training flight.
The victims were Viktor Posokhov, 50; Igor Ulyanov, 32; Alexey Shtanko, 42; Dmitry Makarov, 44; Anton Yermakov, 38; and Yury Boroda, 54.
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